Reunited
by Silver of Dragons
Summary: A doctor visits Lyra's school with a cure to the 'crossing worlds' illness. Why is this figure so familiar? Short WillxLyra fic
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: Voice

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except Athen. Don't sue me.

_**The end of the Amber Spyglass depressed me. Because I'm pretty sure the ending won't change, I decided to write my own Epilogue sort of thing.**_

...

Dame Hannah knocked three times on the door to Lyra's dorm room. On request by the girl, she had no roommate. 'Which meant no one to get her to classes on time' the teacher said silently to herself as she knocked a fourth time, on the forehead of a very surprised Lyra.

"Did you need something Miss?" The girl questioned; daemon curled around her neck.

"Ah, sorry, yes. There is a ball on this afternoon, and I'd like you to attend. There will be some important scholars there who might be able to help you expand your knowledge on the alethiometer, and it might do you some good to socialise."

"But Dame Hannah- "

"Let me speak. There will also be a band of explorers there who have been trying to travel between worlds. That should interest you."

"That's impossible. I'm not going to meet people like that. What they're doing is dangerous and stupid."

"No child. You are going. Besides I heard one of them is a doctor and has discovered a way of travelling through worlds without falling ill."

Lyra had some serious doubts about that claim, knowing first-hand how hopeless it was. Even if someone found a way to open a doorway, there was the Dust and spectres to worry about. But still... maybe there was still some hope.

...

Lyra attended St. Sophia's College in Oxford, one of the most prestigious schools in the area. That meant there was numerous events titled 'important' that she had to go to, most of them against her will.

But that didn't mean she necessarily had to stay at these reunions and get togethers. Most of them acquired useful back doors or windows that weren't guarded by the school security.

Unfortunately, tonight was different.

Tonight, every possible exit was blocked off by a teacher or barricade of some kind. Not that Lyra would have tried to escape. She felt as if something special was going to happen that night. So, she sat back and waited for something to happen, Pantalaimon sitting by her feet.

The girl had matured over the 7 years since she last saw Will and Mary's faces disappear through the window in Ci'gazze. She was lean and tall with hair down to her waist. The time spent a St. Sophia's had given her a sophisticated air and her face looked wiser and older than she actually was. Of course, she was now a magnet to any man that stood near her, just like her Mother.

She was first asked to dance by a handsome young man called Athen. She accepted and followed him to the dance floor.

It was a while later when the explorers arrived. Grateful to have an excuse to stop spinning around the hall, she let go of Athens hands and turned to watch them walk onto the stage at the front of the room.

It was too far away to see their faces properly, but they seemed tired and worn. Lyra tried to move forward to get a better view, but the crowd was thick.

One of the travellers had started speaking. It was hard to hear the exact words he was saying, she was too far away. Though something in his voice sounded familiar...

The speech went on for a long time and by the end of it most of the students had started chatting or dancing again.

The person who had given the speech stepped down from the stage and was almost immediately flocked by Lyra's classmates. Many of the girls that attended her college felt boy-deprived, and the doctor was quite a good-looking guy. Not that she had seen him yet.

Even though Lyra was desperate to hear the man's theories about travelling between worlds she didn't want to get between him and the mob of young women that surrounded him.

So, she went back to Athen and danced until his fan club started to disperse.

And wasn't she surprised at what she saw.

...

_**This chapter also turned out ok considering I was up till 2 am with half vision writing it. This work probably also has multiple spelling mistakes because I didnt edit it.**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**I don't think that the closing the hole in my heart thing is working. I think the only person who can truly reunite Will and Lyra and make me happy again is Philip Pullman. I have no hope in him actually doing that.**_

...

Wills goal for the past two years had been to find a way back to Lyra.

After completing medical school and getting a good career, he started looking for ways to reunite him with his love. Despite his promise, moving on hadn't worked. Every girlfriend was compared to Lyra and they all left him, saying there was a part of him they just couldn't reach.

So he started simple with something he knew, medicine. Looking for a cure to the sickness of travelling worlds. Which meant finding out the cause of the so called disease.

With help from Mary (now his adoptive mother) he managed to use the Cave she recreated after destroying the last one. After long hours of bribing and attempted trickery, the Dust told him the answer.

It had to do with the air quality differences between worlds and how it was like being at the top of a mountain. You had to be born with the lungs for it or perish.

The formula to the antidote came easier than he thought it would. In Wills world, there were so many air quality monitors and distillers that it wasn't long before he developed the cure to the illness.

The next step was to see if it work. Gathering a band of explorers together, he took up his fathers mantle and traveled as far and as wide as he could.

It wasn't until he reached the Aurora in the far north he got what he was looking for. Kirjava helpfully pointed out that that was where he should have gone in the first place.

A city among the stars.

Half hidden by the glowing bands of light that crisscrossed the night sky.

Ci'gazze.

'Hello again' Will thought.

...

For the next few days unpacking and setting up camp were all that was held in the adventurers. Sometimes one of them would stop and gaze at the city in the sky. That was their destination. If only they could find a way to get there first.

That was the night Will dreamed of Lyra, standing in the city and coaxing him across the ice with a smile that he hadn't seen in years. He slowly advanced towards the illusion, each step quicker and closer until he reached the edge of Ci'gazze.

So it was with Lyra's help that his expedition reached the city in the sky.

...

A long time ago an angel had told two children that the key to passing through worlds was imagination. But it was hard for Will to imagine a world he had only briefly visited.

And then he remembered Lyra. The world she lived in was evident in her every step, smile, every feature of her face. Opening his eyes to a new world was the most thrilling thing he had ever felt.

It took only a week to get ID's and lodgings. And another to find Lyra's school and get a spot to talk at an upcoming ball.

Her face was the first thing he saw when walking onto the stage. And the second thing he saw was the man she was holding hands with. Wills heart shattered. They had promised each other to move on. He shouldn't of expected anything different. But the way his heart twisted made him want to scream.

The rest of the night was a blur. He was surrounded by girls wanting his attention but paid them no mind.

But then the sea of young woman parted for a split second, and he saw her staring back at him with innocent surprise and wonder. His broken heart gave one final throb, and he ran from the hall in despair.

...

_**This fanfic will hopefully only be 3 chapters.**_


	3. Chapter 3

Lyra watched with despair as Will turned and ran at the sight of her. She felt a tug in her heart telling her to follow him, but her head told her to let him go, while the dark voice inside her says that he doesn't love her anymore. Conflicted and confused she excused herself from the grip of Athen to grab a refreshment.

As soon as she turns from him, she runs straight into a familiar face, lined with age but still carrying the caring smile she had come to love.

"Mary?!" The shock and excitement in her voice apparent. "Mary..." she repeated in wonder and joy to see such a trusting and understanding face after so many years of semi-loneliness. Lyra rushed into her arms and clung tight, just to make sure the friend in front of her was real.

The older woman returned the desperate hug with one of her own, clinging to old memories that sat in a special corner of her mind, hidden from pain and sadness by new memories. "Lyra, child..."

"Mary, what are you doing here! And was that really, actually Will?" More questions wanted to pore from her lips, but she stopped herself in case she overwhelmed the frail-looking lady.

"You were listening to the speech Will gave, right?"

"Well, yes, but-"

"Then you should have most of your answers already."

Lyra stood still as the knot of questions in her mind unfolded into a glistening web of answers that she hadn't noticed before. But there are always other things lectures can't give you.

"Ok, but now you must tell me how you and Will have been!"

"We've been fine, though a bit lonely without you. But at least we had each other. How were you?"

"At first it was lonely, but I still have the witches and the bears who come and talk with me, and a lot of my friends at Sophia's understand as well."

The loneliness was a lot bigger than she had told Mary. Although she had many friends who had experienced the battles firsthand, none of them shared the same laughs and the cries and the pain that she went through on her journeys with Will. Seeing him again had made her overwhelmed with happiness.

Until he ran out.

"Did Will, well, I mean, you know-"

"Date anyone?" Mary gave a soft chuckle. "You'll have to go ask him yourself." The scientist gestures towards the hall entrance. Lyra gulped.

"A-Are you sure he wants to see me? He ran away when he saw me. Mary..." Lyra started getting worried. "What if he hates me? Or he doesn't love me anymore?" She had tears in her eyes from the thought of never seeing him again, especially after she was just so close...

"You worry too much. Why would he hate you? You never did anything wrong. Now swallow your fears and go see him. You have no idea how much he misses you, too." Mary smiled warmly. Now the adopted mother of Will, she knew how much pain he carried, and how much he needed to get off his shoulders. And the young woman in front of her could fix all that.

After a few shakey breaths she pushed out her chest and swallowed "I will." Despite how much she was trembling, she picked up Pantalaimon and walked towards the exit, desperately hoping that he really _did_ want to see her.

_"It'll all be ok, Lyra_." The pine martin whispered, and she looked up to the star-speckled sky, hoping he was right.

...  
Will stared straight ahead. He wondered why he even thought that she would still be single. Her personality, looks, laughter, all of them now given away to another man. Of course, it wasn't as if he hadn't dated over the past years. But all it did was drown out the longing he felt, to feel Lyra in his arms again.

The breeze rustled his hair and he placed his hand onto Kirjava's fur. He remembered the time she had done the same thing, touching his very soul and something else along with it. Sighing, he knew he couldn't stay away from the party much longer before some fangirl or professor would come looking for him.

The sound of approaching footsteps echoed into the night air. They were soft, as if trying not to be heard, but in the still silence of the park, every crunch made him flinch. He prepped himself and stood up to turn around, freezing at the sight before him.

"Hello there, Will."

...

Her heart was pounding so loud that if Will hadn't heard it yet, he was deaf. Not running to him took all her willpower, and keeping a straight face was even harder. He had changed since the last time she saw him. His jawbone was more defined, his eyes sharper, and hair slightly longer and wilder. He looked strong and sturdy, and held himself with a quaint sort of authority, like Tarzan, only less naked.

"Hello there, Will." A single tear streaked down the side of his face. "So you must've missed me, huh?" Letting Pantalaimon slide to the ground, she stepped forward and pulled him into a crushing hug. Sobbing into his shirt, Lyra hoped that he still loved her.

"Lyra..." His arms wrapped tightly around her waist. "Lyra, what's wrong?"

"Do-do you still love me, Will?" Pulling back from their embrace, she stared right into his brown orbs, hoping for an answer.

"W-what?" She could feel his heartbeat falter against her chest. Feeling crestfallen, she pulled away completely. "Don't you have a boyfriend?"

"Of course not silly!" She looked downwards. "You are the only one I've ever truly loved."

Will's eyes widened. "Then who was the guy you were dancing with?"

"Oh, that guy? He was my dance partner for the night. Its lonely being at a formal with no one but yourself." She grinned and elbowed him in the ribs. "Don't tell me you were jealous?"

"Nooo..." He mumbled under his breath. Looking up suddenly, he grabbed her chin and tilted it upwards. Before Lyra knew what was happening, he pulled her into a kiss. Her lips moved against his, remembering the days they had spent together when they were young. It was a soft kiss, that promised longer and more passionate ones in the future. They broke apart, slightly panting, staring into each other's faces.

Will sat down and patted the bench next to him. She sat down next to him and giggled. After all that time, he was right here with her. Time was on their side now, and so she leaned her head on his shoulder, staring at the lake in front of them, looking towards a brighter future together.

Reunited at last.

...

_**This is the first fanfic I've ever finished :) and thank god it's over. Writing is very hard. I might do an epilogue in, like, ten years' time, when my writing has improved and is actually reasonable. Until then, ~Silver**_


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